The Feelings' Chain
by antoemati
Summary: What happened to the famous love triangle we love to hate constituted of Damon, Elena and Stefan between the seven-year-gap of 'This Time'. Begins after TVD's Season three finale. A certain number of details changed.
1. Part 1

**Hey everyone! So the summary pretty much says it all. Those of you who come from my Klaroline fanfiction, This Time, thank you very much; this is my Christmas present to you, my lovelies. And those of you who are new readers and don't know my writing, well, I hope you will like it. **

**Here is The Feeling's Chain:**

**September 2012**

Damon was seated at the bar of a pub rather far from town. Normally, he would have gone to the Grill; only, at the moment, there were too many prying and judging eyes there and he wasn't in the mood to be stared at and excite pity, at the risk of killing people massively and expose all the vampires in town. He could actually hear the gossipy whispering voices in his head: 'Look, it's Damon Salvatore; he just lost his drinking pal, the former teacher, Alaric Saltzman.' And then another voice would go: 'Apparently, it doesn't stop him from drinking.' Pfff. Pathetic.

Indeed, a lot had happened in Mystic Falls in only a few weeks. And Damon as well as the rest of the group had been through a lot. Above all, Alaric was dead. He had been dead for about two weeks now and his close and relatives were still mourning him, dealing with the void his death had left in their hearts, enduring the huge heartache his demise had caused.

Thank God, Elena was unharmed, physically at least… But she and Jeremy were barely holding up. The poor kids. The whole town sympathized with them: they had lost their both parents, their aunt and guardian, Jenna Gilbert, and more recently, Alaric –in short, all their grown-up figures –in the time of two years. Stefan, Caroline and Bonnie's support had been essential to their survival further to the loss of their last remaining relative. They were each other's landmarks from now on; they were all the family the other had left. One had to say blondie had come in really handy these past few days… notably by telling her mother everything –well, almost –and coming up with a story, a car accident, to explain Alaric's death so that their cover wasn't blown.

Bonnie was the one to make the whole thing even possible: they never would have been able to strike out the threat Alaric had come to constitute if it weren't for her. Klaus had come up with the idea: finding a way to undo the tie that had been established between the vampire hunter and Elena. Cogitating on that, Bonnie had looked into her grandmother's witch's cookbook as Damon liked to call it, and actually found a spell that enabled to do just that. Managing to gather and blood from the vampire hunter, got by Jeremy, and blood from Elena, she had pronounced the Latin incantations and undone the tie. Though trusting Bonnie but not nearly enough when it came to Elena's life, Damon insisted that they made sure the spell had worked first, before attempting anything that would put Alaric's life in danger. Therefore, Klaus was charged to drive a wood stick in the man near his heart. Seeing, it had had absolutely no effect on the raven-haired girl or her health, they all thought of a plan to put an end to the vampire hunter, what they eventually did… killing Alaric by the same occasion. And he had been the one to do the job.

_Damon was lying on the cold hard ground, beaten black and blue, blood dripping from his nose and mouth and covering his face. He had to say vampire hunter Alaric was pretty darn strong. He knew he had to kill him, but he couldn't bring himself. Alaric was the only person in his life Damon could talk to about anything and… he wasn't ready to lose that; he had never experienced that, except maybe with Rose but, that was a whole other relationship. Why was he destined to lose all his friends, as few and rare as they were?_

_His vision was blurring and he was starting to have flashbacks: he saw Katherine, Rose, Alaric, Elena, Stefan. He blinked trying to come back to his senses._

_"__Is that all you got?" he asked sardonically. "Come on, you can do better than that, Ric." He provoked._

_The hunter stopped his motion and glared at him. "Don't call me, Ric." He forbade. "We're not friends." He punched him._

_Damon let out a groan of pain. "We used to be." He reminded._

_"__It was part of the problem." He stated cocking his head. He grabbed his enemy by the collar and rushed him to his feet. "I didn't think it'd be so easy to bring you down."_

_The Salvatore brother looked at him weakly. Being the one to get things done was getting more and more testing. All he saw was his friend; he was Ric. He couldn't kill Ric. Unfortunately, he had to. He had to put an end to this monster. If he didn't, not only the vampire hunter would be the one to put an end to him, but one could also bet on a certainty that he would kill all the vampires he would manage in his lifetime, i.e. forever, i.e. hundreds of vampires, i.e. HIS BROTHER. That's why, gathering all the strength he had left, Damon punched the man in his stomach and landed a heavy efficient blow into his jaw sending him sprawling on his back across the living room; he flew to his side within a second. They were in the Mikaelsons' mansion where the group had decided they would trap the vampire hunter._

_He hit the wall so hard the impact caused the bookshelf nearby to collapse laying all the books it held on the floor. Then, working up his courage, Damon did the only thing he could do._

_"__I'm sorry, Ric." He apologized for the action he was about to accomplish._

_"__For what?" asked the vampire hunter. He had hardly finished his question that Damon had pulled the stake out his jacket and driven right into his friend's heart._

_Because vampire hunter or not, Alaric Saltzman was his friend above all. Or at least had been… _

All that had been hard on the elder Salvatore, even though he pretended to be perfectly fine and acted unaffected in public being his usual jerk-self. Of course, those who were close to him and knew him knew it was all an act and that deep down, he was hurting; and that was normal and completely understandable, even for the insensitive warrior Damon Salvatore. After all, besides Stefan, Alaric was pretty much Damon's only friend, at the light difference that they didn't share their love for the same woman.

Speaking of which, the doppelganger's decision as far as who of the two Salvatore brothers would be allowed to spend the rest of his life worshipping at her altar hadn't really helped his well-being. Indeed, his conscious-self knew that he wasn't good enough for the raven-haired girl and probably never would be. But then there was this other part of him, the one that had hope, the one that longed to love and finally be loved in return, the one that would sacrifice anything, everything for the love of the beautiful Elena Gilbert… He really didn't know what he wouldn't do for her; he would do anything. He had hoped, no, he had prayed that she would manage to see more to him than most, that she would manage to see beyond his stubbornness, his selfishness, his darkness. He had prayed that the small changes he had started to work on his personality somehow would make her realize how much he was willing to try for her. He had prayed they would be enough to make her fall in love with him.

They hadn't been.

_"So… since I'm possibly a dead man, can I ask you a question?" he asked._

_"Yeah, of course." She answered._

_"If it was just down to him and me, and you had to make a choice, who got the goodbye?" he inquired putting as much coolness as he was able to in that critical moment. "Who would it be?" He regretted the question the second it came out._

_It was after Rebekah escaped and Alaric ran after her. He was pretty much at death's door and, he needed to know. He had to have that answer before everything ended._

_Perhaps at least, he'd die happily, for lack of living happily, since obviously he'd never have the chance again._

_There was a moment of silence over the phone as the brunette contemplated what to say. It was easily the longest seconds of Damon's life: waiting to know if yes or not he had finally won his dream girl's love… he had no idea how he had managed to keep breathing during those seconds._

_"I love him, Damon…" she began in a sorry, crying voice; and all his hopes were crushed._

_'Of course', he thought to himself. He closed his eyes, laid down by his own stupidity._

_The truth is he knew what her answer would be. He knew what she would respond before the words even came out of her mouth. He had hope but, it was that kind of hope that you know is vain, that you know won't lead to anything except misery._

_How could he be so stupid? How could he be so delusional…? He never got the girl._

_"He came into my life at a time when I needed someone and I fell for him instantly." She told him and he understood. He understood the connection there was between Elena and Stefan. He had saved her life more than once and in more than one way. Stefan was the better choice for her. Stefan would always be the better choice for her… sadly for Damon. "No matter what I feel for you, I… I never unfell for him." She ended._

He had lost Katherine to Stefan and now, he had lost Elena… to Stefan again, at the slight difference that he never actually Elena. The worst part was she actually did feel something for him. But she had picked his brother, like everybody knew she would; like he knew she would. Well everybody except maybe for Stefan himself who moreover didn't really seem to be aware of the woman's choice.

/

Elena was seated on her couch, her feet touching her bottom, a cup of hot cocoa in the hand. She really did do her best not to think about the past few weeks' painful events, but it was kind of hard when everything was so quiet and she was all alone, left to her own devices, something that didn't happen very often with Bonnie, Caroline, Matt and Stefan always looking out for her, and pampering her, and making sure she was still able to walk and still had all her veins at their proper locus. It is true that things had been tough for her lately; she had had a lot to take in… but for Jeremy, she tried her best to remain still and deal. She couldn't afford to fall apart when she had him to think about: she was all he got and likewise. It was her brother who enabled her to keep holding on.

The ringing of her door pulled the beauty out of her gloomy thoughts and rescued her from her solitude. Thank God!' she exclaimed. She jumped off her couch, put down her hot cocoa and rushed to the door. '

"Hey!" she greeted.

"Hi" Stefan greeted her back. "Can I come in?" he asked.

"Of course. Please come in." She said in an almost pleading tone clearing the way for him.

He raised his brows in amusement and burst out laughing. He entered the house.

"I made some hot cocoa. Do you want some?" she offered nicely.

"Yes, please." He accepted and sat down on the couch as she went in the kitchen to serve him. "The house is pretty calm." He noted.

"Yes, Jeremy is spending the night at Matt's: it's boys' night out." Elena explained and he nodded.

She came back with his hot cocoa and handed it to him. "Thank you." He said taking the cup.

She took her own cup back into her hands and took a sip.

"So how are you doing?" he enquired.

"I'm fine." She answered shrugging. "Some days are worse than the others, you know."

Stefan hummed and cupped Elena's face in his hand. He caressed her rosy cheek. "Well, you look good."

She smiled at him as her pretty cheeks took a pink tint. "I owe it to you." She declared bringing her hand upon his forearm.

"Oh please, I didn't do anything." He objected removing his hand from her face. She seized the occasion to slide her hand from his forearm to his hand surprising him. He looked at her hand holding his.

"Yes, you did." She asserted. "More than you know." She said recalling how much of a support Stefan had been lately.

"You know you ARE allowed to break down, Elena." The so supportive Stefan told her.

She shook her head, tears threatening to fall off her eyes. "No, no, I can't afford to fall apart right now." She said.

"Why?" he questioned. "Because I have Jeremy to think about." She justified.

He tilted his head to the side sympathizing with her. He knew she would say that. She constantly tried to please everybody. She was always thinking about other people's feelings, often neglecting herself.

"Well, Jeremy's not here right now." He told her. "And even if he was, it shouldn't be a problem." He paused. "You can't just be here for him, Elena: you need to be here for each other." He declared. "Let Jeremy be there for you too."

She stared at him, her eyes watery then, dropped her gaze to the floor trying her best not to cry.

"Elena…" he lowered his head searching for her eyes. She brought her arms to his neck and fell into his arms finally letting the tears fall. She had held back so much since Alaric's death a week ago. She hadn't cried a single time holding it together for Jeremy. But inside… inside, it had been a whirl of emotions: she was in an emotional turmoil, overcome with sadness and despair. Stefan wrapped his arms around her and ran a hand through her hair in an attempt to soothe her, what seemed to work judging by how her breathing came back to a regular pace and her tears decreased.

"I really don't know what I'd do without you, Stefan."

"Shhh" he kept on rubbing her raven hair. "You'll never have to find out." He promised.

Back at the pub, the attractive doctor Meredith Fell and Damon were discussing. Well, she was talking –trying to convince him to confide in her, to confide in somebody –he, he was linking drink after drink, determined to ingurgitate the highest amount of alcohol ever. What did he have left to lose by doing that anyway?

Meredith and Damon had met there coincidently, the doctor living only a few blocks away.

"What do you say we end the night at your place?" he suggested.

She gave him a look like he should know better.

"What?!" he exclaimed. "I'm sick, you're a doctor, heal me." He said.

Her stare on him didn't break. "Do you really not know of any other way to deal with your pain?" she asked disbelievingly.

"Don't judge me." He prohibited.

"If you don't want to be judged, then stop acting like an ass." She advised calmly.

She turned to the door and perceived a familiar face. She grabbed her purse and jumped off her seat. "On that note, goodbye." And with that, she walked away. She stopped when she got to Elena's level.

"Thank you for calling me." The raven-haired girl thanked her.

"Sure." She replied with a smile before heading out for the door.

Elena advanced towards the elder Salvatore. "Come on, let's go."

"What are you doing here?" he asked her. "Shouldn't you be cooing with Stefan?"

"You asked me to make a choice, Damon, both of you." She reminded. "I had to make a choice so I did; I picked Stefan, period! Are you going to keep being mad at me long?"

"Yes!" he answered madly causing her to shudder, finally turning to look at her. "Yes, because you gave me hope." He stated. "I had gotten used to the idea that I would never have you and that I would spend the rest of my life miserable, wanting my brother's girl. And you gave me hope!" he exclaimed. "You made me believe that I stood a chance… that you could love me!"

At his words, the raven-haired girl swallowed the lump in her throat and fought back the tears that were threatening to stream down her face. She stared at him in absolute pain: she hated to be the one to have done this to Damon. She knew how special she was because he had fallen in love with her; because he had trusted her enough to open his heart to her. She hurt him and that is the last thing she wanted to do.

Damon emptied his glass of scotch. Then, he turned to the woman he loved again. "I was willing to change for you…" he began. "I was willing to try and be a decent guy." He declared.

"You ARE a decent guy, Damon. You are more than decent." Elena asserted speaking for the first time since Damon had genuinely voiced his feelings to her. "You're amazing." She told him really meaning it, tears in her eyes and voice.

"Yeah… of course I am." He said scathingly huffing. He looked her straight in the eyes. "But I'm not Stefan."

She remained silent and stared at him. What could she say to that?

/

**A week later**

**October 2012**

Elena and Stefan were talking in his room, seated close to each other on his bed. The other Salvatore brother was out. They had been spending a lot of time lately, platonically nevertheless. He was constantly checking in on her and Jeremy and when he wasn't at the Gilbert family house –though there wasn't much family left so the name was rather ironic –or her at the Salvatore Boarding House, they were most likely conversing over the phone.

"How's Damon?" she finally asked dreading Stefan's reaction to her plainly voicing her concern for his brother.

"He's okay." He answered honestly. "He's doing okay." He reiterated. "Better than yesterday and worse than tomorrow I hope." He added in a joking tone shrugging lightly.

She chuckled while nodding. She had seen Damon herself but she was giving him a break lately so she hadn't questioned him on his current well-being: they had skipped the 'how are you doing?' part to pass directly at the 'dealing with the Mikaelsons' part.

"You saw him the other day, why didn't you ask him?" he interrogated nonchalantly as if reading her thoughts.

She looked up at him sheepishly. She didn't want to have this conversation with him. Why did she even bring Damon up? She didn't want to talk about him at all, not with Stefan in any case. The worst part is she had gotten herself, on her own, into this situation. She had Stefan's love and she loved him back with all her heart… So why, why on earth had she let her attraction to Damon magnify like that? Why had she let herself get bewitched by him at the risk of hurting Stefan and losing him? She had kissed Damon for God sakes! And at more than one occasion! She had made out with him; she had been at sleeping with him's door. How could she let things go so far? And ultimately, she had ended up hurting and Damon and Stefan. And all for nothing! Frankly, where was the point?!

"I am trying to cut him some slack." She explained. "I'm not exactly his favorite person right now." She said obviously affected by the fact.

"How come?" inquired the Salvatore brother.

Stefan as well as the other members of the group except for Damon was still unaware of the lady's choice. They had all been so busy… either killing or avoiding to get killed –by the Mikaelsons' siblings. She couldn't decently let him know she had picked him in the middle of gravestones… So her decision was still an unknown fact.

Nonetheless, the distance between them was killing the raven-haired girl. She needed to be close to him, to feel close to him. Ever since they had broken up, she had this hole in her heart where Stefan used to be… She had tried to fill it –by any means possible –always vainly. It seemed like nothing and no one but Stefan could. She loved him with all his being and she missed him so much. It was as though they were two stars destined to reunite to form a constellation; Elena was Stefan's shining star.

It was funny because she felt like they had been apart for ages but at the same time, she remembered each and every one of their moments together as a couple. She remembered his kisses, his touches, his caresses; her epic love. That's what he was.

Despite everything that was going on –Klaus determined to empty her of her own blood, everyone's pain relative to Alaric's death, taking care of Jeremy –sometimes at night, she would still feel his hands on her, his tongue worshipping her body…

Elena merely shrugged at Stefan's question.

"Last time I heard, he was crazy about you." He insisted in a free tone of voice.

The raven-haired girl stared at the Salvatore brother and frowned. Maybe this was the occasion she had been waiting for. Now was the time to say what she had on her mind and couldn't keep to herself anymore.

"I told him I was in love with you… And that even though I do care about him, I never unfell for you." She declared.

He was satisfied with staring at her. "When did you tell him this?" he enquired creasing his brows.

Elena's eyes widened and she gave him a puzzled look. She shook her head. "Does it matter? Did you just hear me?" she asked disbelievingly.

Stefan took a moment to consider Elena's question. "No, you're right, it doesn't." he said shaking his head negatively. "Sorry, I was just processing." He told her.

She cocked her head to the side silently begging him to say something more. Instead of speaking, he leant in, and she did the same, until there were only a few inches separating them. Their noses grazing, he could feel her soft breath on the side of his face. They both advanced a few inches then, stopped, waiting for the other to make the next move. It was as though they were starting their love story all over again. They were reliving those awkward yet sweet moments of the beginning: you know they would wonder what to do and think over their every move and overanalyze… They were going through the 'Will he kiss me? Won't he kiss me?' torture.

They both stared at each other's lips and glanced at the other's eyes. It was him who finally closed the distance that was killing them. His lips met hers in a tender squeeze. She instantly brought her hand gently to his face and kissed him back. He nipped at her lower lip before he released it leaving her breathless; she breathed softly over his lips. They slightly pulled away and looked into each other's eyes; it was all it took. They attacked each other's mouths and engaged into a hot embrace. The kiss quickly turned languorous. She devoured his mouth savagely, their tongues moving sensually together, and she brought her hand to his neck holding on for dear life as she showed him just how much she loved him. Needing to feel her skin under his hand, Stefan slid his right hand underneath her black slipover and caressed the brunette's hip while his other lay on her still covered breast. Her breath hitched at the touch and her mouth drew open tentatively. He placed a sweet kiss on her lips then, gave her a few feather light kisses. Elena tugged at his hair before moving her hands to the bottom of his jumper to slide it upwards. He raised his arms to help her. Once the cloth removed, Elena held Stefan's body in place and laid a sweet kiss on his chest where his heart was supposed to be; he shivered of excitement. Their lips met again, with even more passion, so much so that Elena felt like her beating heart was going to spring out of her chest. He brought his hand behind her head deepening the kiss roughly.

His fingers went to meet her hips again and as he touched her, he slipped his hands up, pulling her slipover up with them. He broke the kiss so he could complete the act only to find she was wearing a white long-line brassiere underneath. The raven-haired girl felt herself get dizzy as Stefan's eyes roamed over her body. This wasn't their first time, far from it, but still, she couldn't help but feel self-conscious. He shook his head in awe.

"You are so beautiful…" he said in a whisper. Elena merely stared at him losing herself in his green eyes while blushing at the genuine compliment. She moved further into the bed until she reached the headboard and Stefan followed her slowly, taking all his time. Elena bit her lip, wild with anticipation, causing his eyes to darken with desire. He looked at her like a lion approaching its prey.

As soon as he reached her, his body hovering hers, he stared right into her brown eyes and she felt as though her body was aflame under his scorching and loving gaze. He lowered his lips and brushed them against her rosy ones. Then, he pressed them on her mouth. But instead of the passionate kiss she was expecting, he gave her a painfully tender kiss pouring his feelings and heart into it and ran his thumb softly along her right cheekbone.

Just when she was drowning in the taste of him, he pulled away extracting a groan of contestation from her. He kissed her cheek causing her to let her head fall back on the white pillow. He moved his lips to her jaw and left feather soft kisses there on his path to her beautiful neck. She brought her hands in his back and then moved them up to his neck at the end of his hair; she traced her nails down and up again causing goose bumps to appear on Stefan's warm skin. She reached for his belt and freed his pants from it.

As he reached her jugular, Elena's most sensitive spot as he knew all too well, Stefan lingered there brushing his lips against the soft skin before sucking it. She inhaled a ragged breath and threw her head back closing her eyes to relish in the satisfying feel; she bit her lip from pleasure. He kept torturing her sweetly grazing her neck with his human teeth while running his hand softly along her right leg. She gasped in response.

He nuzzled up against her raven hair inhaling her scent; he moaned. "I missed your scent." He whispered over the shell of her ear.

She furrowed her hand in ecstasy. "I missed your scent too."

Elena braced a hand against Stefan's chest and pushed him back on the bed getting on top of him. "I missed everything about you." She confided in a small voice.

She brought her lips on Stefan's and kissed him hungrily. As her lips found the lobe of his ear, he untied her long-line brassiere and ran his hand along the raven-haired girl's back. The garment fell on his naked chest and he tossed it at the end of the bed.

She pulled away from his neck and straightened on him. She unfastened her bra and threw it beside her. He stared at her now bare bosom in wonder before savagely pulling her back to him. Her lips crashed on his and their tongues tangled lovingly. She moaned in his mouth when she felt his gentle hand reach her left breast and caress the heated skin and whimpered as his fingertip teased its hard peak. He rolled them on the bed.

However, not quite okay with that, Elena rolled them back –well, he let her –before he could get on top of her, clearly not done with him. She went down on Stefan's chest leaving a trail of sensual kisses on his muscles causing his nipples to harden; she descended further and further, her hands where the soft strokes of her tongue couldn't be, until she reached the waist of his pants and loosened the button before sliding his zipper down.

He rolled her over and took back the control, a glint shining in his eyes. He headed for her chest and Elena arched her back in pleasure when his mouth covered her right swollen nipple and sucked it. He licked her rose tip and she moaned in delight stirring her head in every turn, her eyes closed. As he cupped her other breast with one of his hands and massaged it, he used his other to pull her blue skirt down along with her panties. She ran hands through his hair, nearly losing it as the ripples invading her lower body made her meet his increasing erection. "Stefan…"

He laid feather light kisses on her stomach and grazed softly his lips over the heated skin. He rolled his tongue on her navel and she felt shivers running down her spine, traveling the plenitude of her being. The throbbing emptiness in her wet core was increasing every passing second and was killing Elena.

Her hand left his back to direct towards the top of his already opened pants. She slid her hand into his boxers and grabbed his cock hard for her. She stroked him vigorously enjoying the feel of him in her hands, causing him to harden even more if possible. But Stefan decided otherwise and removed her hand. Instead, he pulled down his pants and boxers and removed them slowly despite her eyes urging him, as if challenging her. She licked her lips unconsciously at the sight of him fully naked on top of her and that sight turned Stefan on beyond belief.

He took a moment to enjoy the sight of the love of his life lying naked between the sheets before slowly lowering his body overs hers towards the bed. He braced his arms on each side of her head and the second he was within reach, she raised her head slightly and brought her lips to him. She kissed him languorously and softly, an interesting contrast to the fire that was burning inside her and threatening to consume her. "I want you…" she breathed out after they broke their kiss, her lips brushing his. "Make love to me, Stefan."

Her wish his command, and not being to take it anymore either, as soon as the words were out, Stefan drove into Elena ripping a raw cry of pleasure from her throat. His fingers on her face, he kissed her temple then her cheek and her neck and began to move inside her gently and slowly. The rhythm increased gradually as she moved with him and raised her hips to create even more contact between them matching his own rocking of hips. He slid his left hand over her arm until he reached Elena's right hand; then, he linked them together. Neither of them could have put into words how much they had missed feeling this close to the other, their bodies flushed together, their hearts beating for one another, their souls connected.

She circled her legs around his hips and with each stroke, the tension grew higher until their movements went from languid and mild to passionate and wild. Stefan didn't think he ever heard her heart race so fast. He thrust in her den each time more deeply, the feel of her walls closing around him more and more overwhelming. He managed to get a hand between their bodies and rubbed her clit with one finger eliciting a deep groan from her throat.

He felt her trembling and saw by the expression on her face, she was reaching her climax. He brought his face mere inches from hers and cupped her forcing her eyes in his. "I love you." He whispered his voice dead from enjoyment. She blinked and he noticed her eyes get watery as she reciprocated her throat dry. "I love you too." She paused and their movements steadied at the intensity of the moment. "I never stopped loving you."

And it was their undoing: his manhood came in contact with her clit and pushed her over the edge. They gasped each other's name, their breaths mingling, as her walls clenched around him one last time and they came in joint release. Their breathings still jerky, Stefan remained inside Elena recovering from his emotions. He gently pulled away from her and lied on the bed taking her with him in his arms. She lay her hand on his chest and rested her head over his heart and drifted off to sleep not without leaving a kiss there. And feeling her heart beat against his chest, Stefan soon joined her, his own heart filled by her love.

**Thank you for reading. I hope you liked it.**

**I cannot wait to hear your thoughts.**

**Oh by the way, this was my first smut scene or attempt at one and I am so sorry for its poor quality. It may very well be my last: I cannot write scenes like that to save my life! Not to mention I start blushing at my computer screen.**

**Well, anyways, Merry Christmas, my lovelies!**

**Till next time.**


	2. Part 2

**Thank you all for reading the first part and following.**

**Be prepared for a ROLLERCOASTER.!**

Elena woke up, a bright smile on her face. She had the sweetest dream. But if the man whose chest her head was resting on was real, then it wasn't a dream. She lightly pulled away and gazed at him, her smile enlarging as her brown eyes roamed his face. _Could he get any more handsome? _She asked herself. _No, definitely not._

_She hadn't slept so well in such a long time! And she knew she had Stefan to thank for that. _

_"__Are you done pretending you're asleep?" she asked him casually. _

_He glanced at her from one eye raising an eyebrow at her; she grinned. She was getting used to this whole vampire thing and she had quite some reflexes._

"You know me too well." He stated closing his eyes again. "You're used to me."

"I could never get used to you." She countered moving closer to him. His lips pulled into a small tight-lipped smile at her assertion.

He had missed this. He had missed waking up next to her, he had missed the way her lavender scent invaded his nose and aroused his senses, he had missed seeing her face first thing in the morning and he had missed having her beautiful, breathtaking smile light his world… he had missed it all.

Stefan felt so blessed to have Elena in his life; she literally gave meaning to his existence. His love for her filled up to the lesser and deepest corner of his being.

"Never?" he asked.

"Ever." She promised a smile catchable in her voice, an honest reflect to the happy one she bore on her face.

Once again, he gave her a tight-lipped smile. Elena's eyes didn't leave his face, roaming it, contemplating Stefan's beauty.

"You're staring." He said.

"I'm gazing." She corrected.

"It's creepy." He stated.

Elena giggled inwardly at the air of déjà-vu and smiled. "It's romantic." She corrected once more.

Stefan put his pillow over his face in faked embarrassment.

"Hey!" protested the raven-haired woman removing the cotton accessory from his face.

He attacked her lips getting on top of her and ravaged her mouth. She cupped his face and deepened the kiss her tongue finding its way inside his mouth and mingling with his. Her hands got lost on Stefan's hips and caressed the heated skin. They moaned simultaneously in the kiss.

She pushed him back and flipped him over. Her lips left his mouth for his neck where she kissed him tenderly before she lowered her strokes and reached his collarbone causing shivers to run down his spine. She had one hand wandering over his broad and sinewy chest while the other rested on the hollow of one of his ribs. She kissed the lobe of his right ear and took it between her teeth nipping it. Stefan let escape a moan and Elena felt the familiar throbbing emptiness inside her that Stefan's touch used to provoke increase. She moved her head to stare at him. "I love you so much." She said her voice raw, looking dead into his blue orbits.

She resumed with her sensuous kisses all over him. She kissed him down his throat to his bare chest. Her hands descended across the hard and soft skin drawing patterns; she outlined the contour of his nipples and traced his fine chiseled abs. Soon, the loving strokes of her tongue followed the path laid out by her gentle hands causing thrills of pleasure to go through Stefan.

He slid his hands underneath her slipover and caressed the sensitive skin of her hips and Elena who was moving lower over his body felt shivers travel her from all her being. She kissed his abdomen then, pulled away to reach for his boxers. She slowly brought down his boxers and started kissing the top of his cock eliciting a sharp intake of breath from Stefan.

She grasped him and stoked him energetically. She removed her hands from his sensitive skin and he whimpered in response. She replaced her caresses by her mouth and left a trail of sensual kisses on his rod. Then, she took him in his mouth ripping a gasp from his throat and sucked his hard manhood. He let out a deep groan and brought his hands down to Elena's raven hair giving her the rhythm that pleased him.

Around eleven a.m., Elena eventually made up her mind to go downstairs –even if it was only to go back up into Stefan's room five minutes later. She was advancing in the corridor when a good smell of coffee lured her into the kitchen. She entered the room and Damon's voice hailed.

"Morning." He said and she turned to him.

"Good morning." She greeted him back ill-at-ease, not really knowing how to act around him from then on. The fact that she was dressed solely with Stefan's blue shirt wasn't really helping.

He stared at her, a tiny, imperceptible smile on his face. She held his gaze for a while but ended up dropping it, crestfallen. She cleared her throat dully and brought a strand of her raven hair back behind her ear; she bore a loose chignon.

"Sleep well?" he inquired.

She glanced at him, and then moved away from him towards the refrigerator. She hummed in response at his question. She felt terrible. What a lack of tactlessness had she shown! She had completely forgotten about his presence in the Boarding House the day before; all she was thinking about in those moments was Stefan and their love. One had to say nevertheless that Damon was out when she arrived last night.

"You?" she asked back opening the refrigerator, not even knowing what she was looking for.

He studied Elena from behind. "Very well." He answered after a small moment.

She slightly shifted so she would see him in her peripheral vision before directing her gaze back on the icy aliments.

"I made some coffee if you want some." He told her.

She turned her head to him, and then looked at the coffeemaker. "Thank you." She said in a rather small voice.

Damon knew he was making Elena uncomfortable. Her demeanor, her body language, her voice… everything let him know he was having his effect.

Weirdly, he wasn't enjoying this as much as he used to. Obviously, he had really gotten burned in this whole mess. He had gotten caught at his own game. He really thought he was in control.

He was wrong.

She took a brick of fruit juice before she closed the fridge and turned around. She went over to where the coffee-pot was.

Damon put down the mug he was holding on the counter. Then, he aimed to leave the kitchen.

"Damon." Elena called while he was still within sight.

He stopped and turned around. "Yes?"

She opened her mouth and clearly tried to say something if her facial expression was any indication, but the words just wouldn't come out so she snapped it shut. She shook her head. "Never mind" she said. He looked at her a little longer and then he turned around to leave again.

"Where are you going?" she asked him casually as he was about to cross the kitchen's door.

"To save the world." He turned around briefly walking backwards to answer. He gave her his trademark wink and exited the room.

Elena leaned on the kitchen's counter and waited till she heard the entry's door slam. She sighed.

**JANUARY 2013**

Stefan and Elena were at a basketball game in Houston in Texas. With them were Matt and Jeremy. It was the latter's birthday so the couple had decided to please him by surprising him with tickets for a basketball final –and Matt being his best friend, they had taken him –the whole trip at Stefan's expenses.

They were holding hands while watching the game.

They had been back together for about three month now and they barely ever left each other side. After their 'afterglow' following their first lovemaking in months, they had automatically become an item again; they had spontaneously gotten back together, the most naturally in the world. There were no discussion, no analyze, none needed. Why talk to state the obvious? Their reunion was long overdue.

Their close and relatives all took them getting back together greatly. Well, almost all of them: Damon's reaction, who had witnessed everything firsthand, was a bit more… moderate. Caroline threw confetti over them so much she was happy. She seemed almost happier than the couple. However, in reality, no one's happiness could have compared to neither Elena's nor Stefan's. "Woo-hoo! Stelena are back!" she had screamed roasting all their eardrums on the occasion of a surprise party in their honor to celebrate their reunion.

They spent most of their waking and sleeping moments together at hers. Truth be told, half of Stefan's wardrobe now stayed at Elena's.

In the beginning, during the first two weeks, they alternated between the Gilbert family house and the Salvatore boarding house, but pretty fast, Stefan decided to limit their time at the boarding house out of care and respect for his brother's feelings. Indeed, their relationship –both his and Elena's –with Damon had never been that awkward and tensed and full with unspoken feelings and words than since he and Elena had gotten back together. Besides, he knew all too well what it felt like to witness Elena in love with somebody else and the pain of feeling like you lost her caused... It was excruciating, it was… the most heartbreaking, overbearing feeling one could experience; he didn't wish that on his worst enemy. And though he couldn't do anything to put an end to his brother's suffering, he could not rub it in his face every morning and every night.

Stefan couldn't be happier about being back with Elena, he really couldn't… But knowing his brother was unhappy and even miserable, though he was good at deceiving, was a very dark in the Salvatore's rosy sky.

Elena too couldn't imagine being any happier. Or maybe she could: if that whore bitchy Rebekah Mikaelson would just stop hovering around Stefan like he was the only piece of meat on earth and she was starving! It was just unbelievable, it got Elena perplexed: whenever she left Stefan's side for a second, she came back to find the blonde standing right where she stood! And Stefan would just give her an apologetic look. Couldn't she just take no for an answer? She wondered what amount of rejection the girl could take.

Ha… too much negative thoughts. He loved her, she loved him, they were happy and that's all that mattered.

"Whoa!" half the stadium including our friends cheered when the Lakers scored another basket.

"They're good!" Elena noted.

"It's only now that you realize that?" Matt commented half-disbelievingly half-mockingly.

Stefan turned to his girlfriend, an amused grin on his face. "You know nothing about it."

"Nothing at all." She admitted smiling shaking her head and closing the distance between them.

He kissed her back and laughed into the kiss.

She broke away. "Hey, thank you for today! Thank you for this trip." She acknowledged. "It means a lot to Jeremy…" She said looking at her sibling who bore an ecstatic smile on his face. She turned back to her boyfriend. "… and it means a lot to me."

He brought strands of her hair behind her ear. "Elena, you never have to thank me." He told her. "As long as you're happy, that's all that matters." He declared.

She smiled at him genuinely. She was undoubtedly the luckiest woman on earth.

She got on her tiptoes to nuzzle her pretty nose with his.

**APRIL 2013**

It was graduation soon and all the senior students of Mystic High were at the same time anticipating and looking forward to colleges' response.

Caroline had ordered them all a cap and a gown.

Time passed and days succeeded one another. The conclusive moment was dangerously approaching. Stefan and his charming girlfriend hadn't discussed their future yet. It was kind of a delicate subject: their future together… since you know… he was a vampire and her, a human they were deeply and utterly in with each other but, it was hard to consider a future in those conditions.

Stefan had tried to get them to talk about it; he had brought up the subject once or twice but she had dodged the subject like a bullet every time so, he hadn't insisted.

She probably had no idea how hard this was on him. It was terrible to love someone death could take away so easily. There were actually times when he woke up in sweat after having a bad dream about Elena dying… more than frequently as a matter of fact.

Truth was Stefan being a vampire and her being a human who, consequently, aged was a growing issue for Elena. She was madly in love with the man and she knew she would love him forever and she wanted to spend an eternity in his arms and she knew he felt the same way because he had told her so –back when Klaus was a threat to her life and Damon fed her his blood –but… being a vampire, craving for blood, killing more importantly… she did NOT want THAT. She had seen Stefan in his darkest moments; she had seen him at the bottom of the abyss, she had witnessed him feeling so bad about himself as the guilty literally consumed his soul and she just never wanted to find herself in such a predicament. The mere thought gave her chills, and not of excitement.

It had seemed to be a foreign issue for such a long time: when the love of your life is immortal, you wrongly tell yourself you're going to spend that eternity with them, when in reality you have a choice to make before. Nevertheless, today it was an issue that scarcely left her mind: she was well aware that there would come a moment when she would have to choose, and she dreaded that moment. Oh yes, she did…

This must be as hard for her as it was for him: living in uncertainty, not knowing if there love would be enough to overcome it all, not knowing if they would have a future, as a 'we'… and more importantly, fearing to lose the other every single day.

However, they had applied to the same colleges –among which Princeton, Yale, George Mason and NYU. They could have compelled their way to either of these colleges but their grades were good enough to get in formally and Elena never would have allowed it anyway. So they were waiting like any normal person with their fingers crossed.

Elena and Damon had grown close again. They were back to teasing and challenging each other. So time really did heal the brokenhearted and bound up their wounds.

Damon had resumed his 'innocent' flirting with his brother's girl under the latter's cautious look who had quite some trouble understanding his brother's behavior. Why chase something you know you're never going to catch? It didn't really make any sense, did it? Then again, Damon was Damon so… He would never change Stefan guessed.

His own relationship with his brother had improved: they were done with the alternation between the silence treatment and the superficial subjects and were back to cordially hating each other. Stefan wondered if he and Damon would ever have a true fraternal relationship, a trustful one without mistrust, suspicion-free, deprived of ulterior motives… There were times when he seriously doubted it, and thought the fact was a shame. They had held a grudge against each other for over a century because of Katherine and that, despite the fact that they thought she was dead –at least Stefan thought so. He could only imagine what their love for Elena would do to their brotherhood… The chances were it would never recover.

**JUNE 2013**

"I can't believe it: we are actually all here…" Caroline said astonished looking at all of her friends. "We are ALL here together." Her eyes going round the small circle they were forming.

Bonnie let out a half-smile half-laugh with happy and nostalgic however sad tears in her green eyes while looking at her blonde friend.

"Bonnie Bennett, are you crying?" Caroline noticed in an incredulous tone of voice.

Elena turned to look at Bonnie and saw what Caroline was talking about; she took her in her arms.

"It's our last hurrah before we head off to college." The witch said melancholy.

Elena released her harshly. "That's right: YOU'RE heading off to college." She made it explicit.

Indeed, Bonnie and Caroline, her two girly best friends were leaving town in only a few weeks, a month barely; they were headed for Massachusetts to study at Boston's University and though she was thrilled for them, she would miss them like crazy! Hell, they hadn't even left yet and she missed them already!

She couldn't remember a time when these girls weren't a major part of her life. She didn't know how she'd manage the distance and all. Who would she confide to from then on? Sure, she had Stefan and Matt… and Damon if you want. But it wasn't the same. She couldn't tell them **everything**; she couldn't talk to them like she talked to Bonnie or Caroline: they weren't of a feminine gender after all… She hoped not anyways: the contrary might very likely kill her.

And what about Jeremy? Who would help her with her brother from then on? It was true: only Bonnie knew how to keep him on track whenever he was on the edge of going off the rails; she knew how to talk to him better than any of them and that, in spite of their history, or thanks to their history –Elena wasn't sure.

"Aw… Elena…" Caroline started.

"…leaving me alone and abandoned." The doppelgänger completed crossing her arms on her chest before she summoned a baby pout on her face.

Stefan cleared his throat to remind his girlfriend of his presence. She looked at him from the corner of the eye; he raised his brows at her and conspicuously shook his head.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, I love but you don't replace my best friends." She declared turning back to said best friends.

Stefan opened his mouth and let out a shocked huff. "Okay. Alright. I am not getting my diploma today. What's one more anyway?" he said and turned pretending to leave.

"Wait, wait." Elena grabbed his right arm and retained him. "I was just kidding." She pressed herself against him and he gently clasped her even more by his hold on her shoulders. She got on her tiptoes to whisper into her boyfriend's ear. "You'll always be enough." She pressed a quick kiss on his the side of his neck and extricated herself from his embrace.

Caroline rolled her eyes –though internally, she couldn't be happier. "Oh please, get a room."

"Oh, we intend to." Elena replied.

Bonnie's and Caroline's eyes widened in shock at her words and Matt frowned. Two seconds later, they had all burst out laughing, the couple included.

"Let's go get our diploma." Caroline intimated.

They nodded and joined their respective seats set out.

**OCTOBER 2013**

Today was Stefan and Elena's two-year anniversary: two years ago, this day about two hours and fourteen minutes from now, the couple made love for the very first time, just after Elena confessed her love to Stefan for the first time as well. So yeah, that date was a special one for Stefan and Elena, which is why Elena Gilbert –that's right, I did say Elena Gilbert –decided to enter her kitchen to actually COOK for once or at least, try to. She cooked them spaghettis with Bolognese, his favorite meal, and managed not to set fire to the kitchen and burn down her house.

She had prepared them a very nice table. There were petals of red roses sprinkling the whole floor. The light was subdued to give a romantic atmosphere and Elena had disposed one candlestick at each side of the table.

All she was waiting for now was for Stefan to arrive. She went back to the dining room to make sure everything was perfect: it was; she arranged the cutlery again.

Tonight was to be perfect, just like their first night together had been –well until she found out just how much resemblance there was between Katherine and herself.

Who she assumed was Stefan finally knocked at the door and she skipped to open.

"Hey!" she greeted him with the biggest smile Stefan had ever seen and he couldn't help but smile right back at her.

He entered the house and laid a sweet kiss on her lips. As he was about to pull back, Elena cupped his face and deepened it lightly.

"Happy anniversary." She wished him after they separated, her lips still grazing against his.

He pulled away so he could gaze into her beautiful loving brown eyes. "Happy two-year anniversary." He merely said back.

She smiled at him lovingly then, closed back the door.

He advanced further into the house, Elena right behind him, but stopped near the living-room's entrance. His brows knit together: he could smell food.

"Yep, that's right." She answered his thoughts. "I cooked." She announced. "And no, as you can see, I did not set my kitchen on fire." She added with a laugh gesturing with her hands.

Stefan chuckled. "Well, the night's still young." He declared.

She frowned and hit him playfully on the chest passing by him to take a bottle of champagne in the refrigerator to celebrate.

"Wait" he asked her keeping her next to him by grasping her forearm. She turned back to him at his gesture and met his worrying green eyes. She wrinkled her brows as he lowered his head. He seemed nervous and acted weird all of a sudden.

He took a look around the living room and noticed the table she had prepared for him. He smiled softly yet sadly. She was too sweet. "You shouldn't have gone through so much trouble." Stefan said.

"Oh, it was no trouble, I wanted to." She reassured him tapping the wind with her hand.

"I know." He paused and turned to her. He found her eyes. "But you shouldn't have." He told her.

Elena stared back into his forest green eyes and swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. She searched his face but it was of no use… she had already seen it, she had read in those beautiful eyes of his that hardly kept any secrets from her: whatever it was he wanted to say to her, was no good. "You don't mind if I take a seat, do you?" she rhetorically asked and moved past him towards the couch and settled there.

Elena quietly waited for Stefan to join her, not quite eager about it.

He came and sat next to her but however left a disconcerting space between the two of them. She waited for him to talk but as he still hadn't spoken after several seconds, the raven-haired woman lost her patience. "This evening isn't going to turn out the way I expected it too, will it?" she asked not really waiting for an actual answer.

Stefan glanced at her but that second was enough for her to catch the wrestling emotions in his green eyes. She nodded. 'I guess I have my answer' she thought to herself.

She stared at him, kept her burning gaze focused on his face pressuring him in the best way that she knew, praying that the emotions on her face would suffice to dissuade him.

Stefan heaved a sigh and then completely turned to Elena and faced her. "When I left town with Klaus and reunited with my Ripper self, the only thing that kept me going and… stopped me from killing myself to put an end to my misery… was you." He started confiding and she listened to him intently reliving those painful moments with him, the heartache she felt when he left as keen as in that time. "And when Klaus finally released me from his compulsion, the reason I decided to my keep my humanity dull was because… was because…" his hoarse, strangled voice caught in his throat and Elena swore she was going to end up crying if he carried on.

It was too much for her to see him in such pain, and she knew how difficult this was for him.

So why, why on earth was he doing this?! Why was he putting them both through that again? Hadn't they been through enough? Why were they never entitled to a peaceful happiness?

"It was because I could not **stand** the pain that hurting you… of biting you… caused. I hated myself for what I had done to you." He paused. "And I reckoned you ought to hate me." That was Elena's undoing: the tears merely fell off her brown eyes. "And as you didn't, as you kept trying to bring me back, I did the only thing I could think of would help appease my guilt…" he paused again and stared down at the carpet. "I drove you into my brother's arms." He completed.

"Stefan." She cut him off.

"No, let me finish." Stefan told her. "I am telling you this so that you perfectly understand that this is **not** a matter of love." He explained. "Because I **do** love you; I am **so** **terribly**, **desperately** in **love** with you, you know I **am**." He said and she sniffed.

Stefan tore his gaze away from her tear-strayed face and looked down. There was a small, heart wrenching silence as he closed his eyes and shook his face trying to summon the inner strength to go through with this. "I don't how to say this, Elena…" he began.

"Then don't." she cut him off and pleaded. He turned to look at her. "Don't!" Elena repeated. "Please, Stefan…" she insisted. "I love you." She told him genuinely in a broken voice.

"I love you too." He reciprocated in an almost inaudible voice, and shed an unwilling tear. "But I can't do this anymore, Elena." He told her shaking his head and she sobbed. "I can't do with your feelings for Damon anymore; I've reached my limit."

"Stefan!" she cut him off. "Stefan!" she exclaimed again as he kept talking. "What feelings for Damon?!" she asked him, incredulous, shaking her head questioningly. "I don't have any feelings for Damon, I love **you**, **you**." She repeated. "Why don't you hear me?!" she inquired.

"Elena… I didn't come here to debate." He said simply. "I am not asking you, I am telling you: you have feelings for Damon. It's a fact, face it!" Stefan asked her starting to lose it. She really wasn't making this any easier for him, not that he expected her to, but still… This was killing him as much as her! Maybe even more. "Stop trying to deny it, embrace it!"

Elena winced at Stefan's harshness.

"It is time you experience those feelings."

Elena's face misted as her heart tightened in her chest.

She tore her gaze away from him, obviously mad at him.

"I am doing this for you." He paused. "I am doing this for us." He tried to make her see.

She refused to look at him.

"If there is a chance, whatever it is, that you and I will find our way back to each other, you will have to be with Damon first." He declared. "Otherwise, we will never work out… You will always have this giant 'What if?' in the back of your head… and I will always be aware of it." He explained.

He said all that while looking at her though she continued to deny him her gaze.

Stefan understood Elena; he wished she would understand him too.

"Honey, please look at me." He asked her.

"Don't." She said finally turning to him and shot him a fierce look. "Do **not** call me honey." She forbade. Her tone was low but it was no reflection of the anger Elena had in her in that moment. "You **are** breaking up with me." She reminded Stefan and stood up.

Stefan watched her as she moved away from him across the couch.

He closed his eyes cursing the earth.

"Elena, I cannot have you being with me if you're not fully aware of all your options."

She didn't deny it. It wasn't true, but she didn't deny it. What would have been the point? She knew him: he had already made up his mind… and his decision was irrevocable.

"I cannot wake up every morning and wonder if today is the day that you're going to realize that you want to be with my brother. I can't do this anymore, Elena. I don't want to do this anymore."

Elena turned to the man she was certain she would love forever. "You don't want to be with me?" she asked him.

He looked up at her and met her face scored with tears and struggled even hard to retain his own tears. He wouldn't in addition inflict her the pain of seeing him crying. "Not right now, not like this, I don't."

Elena stared at him a moment more tears streaming down her face, his words cutting her like a knife, her heart being torn apart.

And then, she turned her back on him, literally.

Stefan faced her back a few seconds and then looked as a single tear drop helplessly fell off his left eye.

**Okay, so this part literally broke my heart. It took a lot out of me.**

**Please leave a review. Till next time.**


	3. Part 3

_Thank you for following/ favoriting._

**NOVEMBER 2013**

Elena and Stefan hadn't spoken a word to each other since their breakup. It had been two weeks and they were still at the point where they avoided each other. Well, he was avoiding her, she was too busy crying her heart out and trying to make sense of his decision. Actually, she had given up on the last part.

She just didn't understand; she couldn't understand. He loved her, she loved him… Them, together, as one… there was nothing better!

'Your feelings for Damon' his words resounded in her head like a broken record. 'What feelings for Damon?' she asked herself emotionally exhausted. She had none. How was she supposed to say it? What language was she supposed to use for him to hear her?

She wasn't going to lie: Damon was someone important for her, someone whose feelings mattered… She would do almost anything for him; she cared about Damon, deeply. But that was it! There was nothing more.

Why didn't he get that? Why didn't he understand that he was the only one she loved? The only one she could imagine herself being in love with…? He was simply the **one** for her.

After everything that they had been through… how come he didn't know how much he meant to her? Because clearly he had no idea, because if he did… She sighed letting more tears roll down her cheeks, and she buried herself in her tears-wet bed. If he did, he would not be doing this to her. He would not be shattering their love story into pieces…

"Stefan!" Klaus was surprised to see the younger Salvatore standing at his door.

The latter greeted him with an emotionless face.

"What are you doing here?" Klaus asked him. "My sister's heart is nowhere to be broken." He asserted.

Stefan scoffed. "Oh please." He snorted and entered the Mikaelson mansion passing by its owner without having been invited. "You care about Rebekah's feelings just about as much as I do." He said on his way.

Klaus heaved a sigh and closed the door. He turned to Stefan. "To what do I owe the displeasure?" he asked.

"You really need to re-examine your way to greet people, Klaus." Stefan let him know.

The jet black haired man headed for the living room with Klaus behind him, reluctantly following him. He noticed suitcases by the staircase. "You going somewhere?" he inquired. "Or somebody's moving in?" He turned back to the hybrid.

"Not that it's any of your business, but yes, I am going somewhere." The latter responded.

"New Orleans?" Stefan took a guess.

Klaus nodded.

"But you just came back." Stefan noted.

"True."

There was a moment of silence as neither said anything more.

"You didn't come here to ask for my schedule, did you?" Klaus asked.

The Salvatore man turned around and walked towards the fabric couch where he sat. "I did, as a matter of fact."

He looked up at Klaus who was still standing before him at the living room's entry. "I am leaving town." He announced.

Yep, that's right. Stefan **was** leaving town.

It was a long thought decision upon which he had dwelled. He had weighed the pros and the cons and pretty fast, the cons had prevailed over the pros. He had no reason to stay anymore. Elena was what brought him back in Mystic Falls in the first place: he wanted to start a life with her… And now that that had gone sideways, well… what reason did he have to remain in this town?

There was just one assurance he needed before he could leave.

"Are you now?" he inquired. "And you're leaving your so precious Elena behind you?" he was surprised, his brows wrinkled. "Oh my…" he raised his hand and covered his mouth with it. He shook his head lightly. "There wouldn't be trouble in paradise, would it?" he inquired quite derisively.

Stefan merely stared at the wall before him, an impassive expression on his face.

"Please tell me Elena didn't pick Damon in the end otherwise, I really will be left with no doubt concerning the fact that the girl truly has no ounce of intelligence." He commented and let out a mocking laugh as he looked away.

"That's enough!" Stefan spoke his limits having been reached, causing Klaus to stay still. "I did not come to hear you criticize Elena or discuss her love life with you." He said in a calmer voice and lower tone.

_'__Since you're not a part of it anymore...'_ Klaus thought to himself. However, as he looked back at Stefan and caught the deathly glare that was directed to him, he guessed he thought a little too loud. He raised his hand in surrender.

He turned around and went to his bar in order to serve himself and Stefan a glass of scotch. "So why exactly are you here?" Klaus asked again. He went over the couch and handed the Salvatore his glass. "You mentioned something about it being related to my schedule?"

"Thank you." The latter acknowledged taking the glass. "Yes, it is. I would appreciate it if you kept Elena **off** your schedule while I'm gone." He asked. "And even after that if possible." He added.

Klaus stared at Stefan for a short while. "Very well." He ended up saying.

"Excuse me?" Stefan asked. Had he just heard what he had just heard?

"Were you hoping for a different answer?" Klaus asked back.

"No, but…"

"Okay, everything's good then." The hybrid concluded.

"I guess so." Stefan said slightly perplexed, his brows creased and his state of doubt evident in his voice. "Thank you."

Klaus put down his drink and looked up at his guest. He raised his head too. "If I were you, I would leave now." He paused. "I'm about ten seconds away from changing my mind." He warned.

Stefan emptied his glass and then put it down. "Thank you." He acknowledged again whether it was for the drink or his acceptance to leave Elena be.

He stood up and walked towards the door. He was about to exit the room when Klaus' voice stopped him.

"Stefan…"

He turned around but stayed silent waiting for the Mikaelson to speak.

"How do you do it?" the latter inquired.

Stefan shook his head in incomprehension so Klaus stood up and approached him before he elaborated. "How can you walk away from her all the while knowing that she's the only one for you in this whole world?" he asked. "Where do you find that strength?"

Stefan examined Klaus' expression warily as well as the emotion dissimulated in his voice: if they were any indication, Klaus was genuinely interested by his answer.

Perhaps, he had underestimated the hybrid's feelings for his best friend. Perhaps, there were genuine feelings there… How did it matter anyway? She was far and he was headed for New Orleans again. It wasn't like they would see each other the day after.

"It's called love." He answered simply but without judgment, without any kind of insinuation. "When you… love someone… truly, madly, deeply…" Stefan explained lost in his thoughts. "…you know when to let go… you know when to put the person's happiness before your own." He finished and looked at Klaus after a few seconds.

The latter stared at him a moment and nodded slowly. "Let go…" he repeated as Stefan's words sank in his head, a bit as though he was asking an unasked question.

"That's what you did with Caroline." reminded the Salvatore and he couldn't help but notice how Klaus' jaw tightened at his best friend's mention.

"Well, I didn't really have a say in the matter." He replied causing Stefan to frown lightly.

'You respected her wishes anyway.' Stefan was tempted to say. But he didn't: there was already enough tension in the room and this conversation had already reached a genuinely awkward level of depth. "I have to go." He chose to say instead. "Thanks again." He acknowledged and headed for the entry's door.

"No." Klaus' voice resounded in the room and stopped Stefan. "Thank you."

Stefan turned his head to him: he had a serious and (Stefan would have said) sincere expression on his face.

Stefan nodded and ran out of that place without even trying to know what for! He had his opinion however.

This was it.

Stefan was officially and definitively done with Mystic Falls –that is to say for a certain long period of time, not forever a part of him dared to hope.

He had talked to Klaus; the Original had agreed not to use Elena as his personal disposable source of blood anymore. Therefore, her safety was ensured, at least as far as the Original Hybrid was concerned; as for the rest, he trusted his brother.

In a word, he was out of excuses to remain in town.

He had put an end to his relationship with Elena setting forth her feelings for his brother; and for all he thought that it was necessary for the lady to explore those feelings, he didn't care to be around when she did. Imagining it would be painful enough, there was really no need to witness it.

He was giving up so much for her, for her happiness on the long haul. She may not realize it now but he **was** doing this for her –**and** them in a way too. She couldn't know what she wanted until she explored all her options and they couldn't be happy together, not in all the extent of the word, when she had this giant 'What if?' over her head and he was aware of it; he needed for her to be fully sure of herself, to be fully sure of her choice. They had overcome so much… He could only hope that they would eventually find their way to each other once again and come out on top.

As the saying goes, if you love somebody, let them go, for if they return, they were always yours. If they don't…

As devastating as the whole situation was, at least he knew his brother would finally have the girl and therefore experience happiness and… well, he wasn't unhappy for him.

Stefan had just finished loading his SUV with his luggage when Damon and Rebekah came out from the house. Recently, those two had… well, they had gotten closer… Let's say that like that, not to say that they were attached to the hip from now on. They had become bedmates or friends with benefits or whatever they wanted to call it.

He closed the boot as they stepped out towards him.

"So you're really leaving?" Damon realized more than he asked.

"I am."

Damon nodded. "Are you sure about this?"

"As sure as I'll be." Stefan responded and his brother merely stared at him.

The poor Damon was completely clueless as to what had happened between Elena and Stefan to lead his brother to leave town so abruptly.

"Uh… I'll just be… inside." Rebekah announced gesturing towards the house. She figured the two bros could use a moment just the two of them to say goodbye properly –or in their own…Salvatore brothers' way. "You take care of yourself, Stefan." She told him and turned heading for the entrance.

"Yeah, you too." He told her in return before she entered the house.

After the blonde left, there was a long moment of intense silence between the two brothers.

"Where are you going?" Damon inquired breaking the silence.

"I haven't decided yet." Stefan answered. "I'll go to California, but I don't think I will stay there very long."

Damon nodded. "Does Elena know you're leaving?" he asked.

Stefan looked down at that question. "No, that's a conversation I have yet to have."

An awkward silence settled between them again. A second Stefan thought about asking Damon to look out for Elena. But he didn't because he knew he didn't have to: Damon loved Elena as much as he did; obviously, he would watch after her and keep her safe, just like he always had.

"I know… that we don't say this very often." Stefan started rather hesitantly. "But I…"

"I know." Damon cut him off getting where he was going. "Me too." He said simply.

Like most of the time, in important moments, the two brothers got each other and actually said it better by saying less.

They took the few steps separating them and bro-hugged each other.

"Give news." Damon said pulling away.

"I will." Stefan promised.

Stefan parked at the middle of Wickery Bridge. He got out of his car and approached her: she was standing right in front of the bridge staring at the canal deep in her thoughts. She sensed him approaching though, but didn't turn around.

"How did you know where to find me?" she asked him.

Stefan advanced till he was standing right behind her. "I know you." He simply responded.

Elena turned her head and looked at Stefan from above her shoulder. "You sure do." She confirmed. "Better than anyone." She added heartfelt. Elena truly felt like there was no one on earth who knew her nearly as well as Stefan, not even Jeremy –sometimes, she actually felt like… he knew her better than she knew herself, which is why it was so heartbreaking to respect his choice and to let him go.

Stefan chose to remain silent and didn't reply. Whatever he said wouldn't ease things between them at this point. The weirdest part was despite them having broken up; there **was** still an undeniable familiarity between Stefan and Elena.

"Why were you looking for me?" she inquired.

"I uh, I had something to say to you." He responded.

"I'm listening."

Stefan opened his mouth but then snapped it shut. He had absolutely no idea how to say this. It was as though he was reliving their breakup, only on a whole other level, and the words just wouldn't come out.

He took a deep breath. "This isn't going to be easy." He warned.

She stared at him and then made her eyebrows have a rise and fall motion in response. "Nothing seems… easy lately." She commented.

"Indeed." He agreed with a nod. He paused and looked at her contemplating the waterway. "You do know this hurts me as much as it does you?" he made sure. It was important for him that she knew that they were sharing this pain, that they were going through it together –like all the rest.

Elena simply nodded not trusting her voice to speak, trying to hold back her tears. Every time she saw Stefan's face lately or even thought of him, she would find it very hard not to cry.

"Elena, I, I've really thought about it and uh…" he was turning it over inside his head in all the directions but he just couldn't find the words… or they wouldn't come out: they were stuck in his throat. He sighed inwardly. "I'm leaving town." The words escaped his mouth much more abruptly than he intended them to.

Elena's eyes snapped at him and he briefly closed his eyes in reaction to his own indelicacy. He reluctantly looked back at her. "Excuse me?" she asked him to repeat not sure if she had caught that right.

"It's what's best." He told her.

'Huh?' She stared at him in disbelief, agape, utterly taken aback. 'Huh? What?!' Her mind couldn't quite function.

"What?" She expressed her thoughts. "What are you saying? What are you?" Stefan closed his eyes painfully at her obvious hurt and confusion. "For whom?!" she yelled at him.

"Elena, this…" he attempted to explain but she wouldn't let him.

"Is not what is best!" she finished for him. "Stefan, you can't just…" she paused as tears laced into her voice and started to blur her vision. "Have you even thought about it?!" she exclaimed her eyes widened.

"Of course I have!" he yelled back at Elena. "What do you think? That this is easy for me?!" he questioned her. Why was she making things so difficult? Didn't she realize how hard this was already on him? "Hurting you, walking away from you, this is killing me!" he told her, his voice on the verge of breaking.

"We have been through this already, Elena. We've done this. We have talked about this; we have had this discussion."

"No." Elena cut him off. "There was no discussion! Stefan. You broke up with me! Period! You didn't ask me for my opinion, and you still aren't." She reminded.

Further to her outburst, Stefan just looked away: he was honestly out of words to speak.

She looked away too, irritated, and in pain, and sort of mad at herself for lashing out on him. She sighed, her crying having become blurred.

"I'm sorry." She apologized and wiped her tears away. "That wasn't fair." She admitted in a sad voice.

Stefan blinked with tears at the corner of his eye. "You'll be okay, Elena. You're the strongest person I know." He assured her. Elena turned to him and wrapped her arms around him pulling him into a warm embrace, the last one before... a long while. He wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her back. And it just fell right: this was where he belonged.

She closed her eyes and let more tears fall. She tightened her grip on his shoulder and his back holding on him for dear life. She sobbed. "I love you so much, Stefan." She told him her brown eyes brimming with tears.

Stefan couldn't help but shed tears as well. "I love you more." He reciprocated honestly.

Elena sniffed and reluctantly pulled back knowing he had to go.

Stefan cupped her head and laid a tender kiss upon her forehead closing his eyes, releasing another tear. "Always." He told her.

He pulled back and Elena opened her eyes meeting his afflicted ones. She gazed at him as though she was trying to burn his image into her memory. For she didn't know if… she didn't know when…

She memorized everything about him: from his so particular and amazing scent, passing by how the front of his hair was spiked a little on top and subtly worked together into a peak, to his gorgeous, unique, forest green eyes.

Their eyes went back and forth between the other's two until catching them both off guard she crashed her lips against his in a fiery, passionate, painful kiss. They both poured their heart and soul into that goodbye kiss; they poured their immeasurable love for one another into it and prolonged it for as long as they could… until they were out of breath. They pulled away and panted, their foreheads grazing.

Stefan reluctantly loosened his grip around her waist and released her. He walked away from her moving backwards, keeping his eyes on her committing her to his memory while pertinently knowing that he could never forget her even if he tried. Elena refused to cry refusing that his last image of her was her in tears.

He eventually turned around and kept walking to his car. He entered his SUV and started it. It took all Stefan's mental strength not to look back at her one last time but, he knew if he did, he would never find it in him to actually leave. So he simply drove off.

And once he had disappeared off into the blue, Elena did the only thing she had left to do: she fell onto the ground and cried her heart out.

**NOVEMBER 2013**

She was a mess! It had been a month and Elena was **barely** recovering. She was missing classes, what would be on her college report; she was scarcely feeding herself and nobody was getting was through to her! Damon had simply given up: he checked out on her every time he could, made sure she was still alive, but he was truly short of ideas to make her feel **alive** again. Jeremy had done everything he could too… to no avail. So as a last resort, he just called Bonnie and asked her if she and Caroline would come pay their BFF and current mess a visit. Of course, they said yes and two days later here they were: in Mystic Falls in the raven-haired woman's bedroom.

All three of them were seated on her bed. Through her hard and truly unceasing tears, Elena had managed to tell them all the details about her breakup with Stefan and the latter's sudden departure a month ago. To say the blonde and the witch were taken aback would have been an understatement: they were already aware of the couple's separation, but they were completely unaware of the reason why.

"So how are things between you and Damon?" Bonnie inquired causing Elena to look up at her.

"Bonnie!" Caroline scolded her. "What the hell?! That's irrelevant!" She spoke harshly.

"Shut up, Caroline!" Bonnie snapped. "That is the reason Stefan left in the first place." She reminded her before turning back to Elena. "So how are things between you and Damon?" she asked again.

Elena shrugged not sure if she was getting the witch's point. "They are… normal." She answered. "We haven't… gotten closer or anything if that's what you want to know." She said. "He's dating Rebekah." Elena informed.

"He is?!" Her two friends exclaimed simultaneously their eyes widened.

"He is." Elena affirmed. "They are hardly apart for more than an hour." She commented half-rolling her eyes.

Caroline moved her head backwards as she frowned discontented.

"You seem to be delighted." Bonnie remarked ironically. "Are you jealous?" She asked directly.

"What?! No! Absolutely not!" the raven-haired woman exclaimed.

"Whoa. Chill out." Caroline advised her. "What's up with being defensive?"

"I'm not being defensive." Elena contradicted crossing her arms under her chest.

"Yes, you are." Bonnie supported her roommate in Boston. "…which is maybe a good thing." She gave her opinion and both Caroline and Elena knit her brows in confusion. "Maybe Stefan was right to leave so you and Damon can live what you have to live." She said simply.

"Yeah right, as if Damon could be the better option." Caroline commented sardonically.

"Shut up, Caroline!" Bonnie said once again.

"What do you mean, Bonnie?" Elena's small voice was heard asking.

The dark-skinned woman shrugged. "I mean that Stefan left for a reason. Don't ruin things so that he left for nothing. Get together with Damon. Explore you feelings!" she exhorted. "It's about time." She said pointedly.

"Since when are you on Damon's side?" Caroline asked the witch disbelieving, an almost contemptuous expression on her face.

"I'm not." Bonnie defended. "But Stefan's got a point." She paused. "I mean how do you choose between two ice-cream flavors when you've only tasted once?" she attempted to explain.

"Shut up, Bonnie!" Caroline rebuked this time around.

"I cannot believe you just said that." Elena spoke.

"Yeah, neither can I." The witch said actually shocked by her own words.

The three girls looked at each other in a way that said it all and burst out laughing the second after.

Elena sighed after her laughter calmed. "I just miss Stefan so much." She confided to her best friends heartfelt. "I love him. I can't just forget about him." She told them.

He was constantly on her mind.

Things weren't meant to feel like this, they weren't supposed to be without each other… He was her whole life…; and she knew she was his. The pieces of her so messed up life didn't fall into place without Stefan… It just didn't rhyme without him! Her world was deprived of its meaning.

She had this aching pain in her chest; and it-just-wouldn't-go-away! Every time she would close her eyes, his image would appear in her head, and memories of them would rush back to her mind and leave her with a bittersweet feeling; for it was all so poignantly beautiful.

"Nobody's asking you to." Bonnie said.

"It's not about forgetting him, Elena; it's about learning how to live without him again." Caroline explained.

"So you agree with all that Bonnie said?" Elena asked the blonde confused.

Caroline tilted her head to the side, indication of her indecision. "Not… entirely; but yeah, in large part." She responded nodding.

"Wow." The raven-haired woman let out extremely stunned by the blonde's sudden change of behavior.

"Atta girl!" Bonnie said at the attention of her roommate in Boston and as a result, they all laughed.

"Don't get me wrong: I am definitely still a Stelena shipper, always will be! Guilty as charged!" Caroline specified however and Bonnie and Elena exchanged an amused knowing look. "But maybe it's necessary for you guys to remain apart for now; maybe, you have to be with Damon first so you can all realize what I always knew: that you and Stefan are meant to be!" She declared pointedly.

Bonnie smiled and rolled her eyes playfully while Elena bore a thoughtful expression and seemed to be taking in Caroline's words.

"He let you go, Elena." The blonde said. "And that is actually the most beautiful demonstration of love that you can do to someone: letting them go…, setting them free." She finished.

Elena stared at her friend several seconds taking in what she said, and then looked away; a faraway expression appeared on her face. Caroline was right: what Stefan was doing for her was very selfless: he was doing what he deemed the best for her; he was letting her go, and by so doing the ultimate sacrifice. And this wasn't about forgetting Stefan. She could never forget him even if she tried. She would **always** remember him and their love, and **forever** would always be theirs; but she had to move on with her life and rebuild herself.

After all: don't people who are meant to be always find their way back to each other?

She would have to hold on to that.

"Thank you." She suddenly said. "Thank you for coming so fast." She paused. "Thank you for being here." Elena acknowledged.

"Thank Jeremy." Bonnie said.

"We're exactly where we need to be." Caroline outdid. "Girl hug." She said opening her arms and her two friends laughed but complied.

**JANUARY 2014**

It had been a few months since Stefan left and Elena was doing much better, and more importantly, she was starting to **feel** better. One must say that Jeremy and Damon weren't for nothing in her recovery; they were of great support.

She and Damon were sitting in a couch in his house watching a movie casually on a mundane Friday night. It was almost unbelievable how casual their life had been since Klaus had consented to leave Elena the hell alone.

Damon turned his head to see Elena's face and saw how concentrated she was and how intent on the movie her eyes were. He raised an incredulous eyebrow at her. "What is it with women and this Dicaprio guy anyway?" Damon voiced his thoughts.

"Uh…hello." Elena said waving her hand before his face. "He's beautiful!" she responded pointedly. "He's sexy, he's muscled, and he has a romantic air…"

Damon rolled his eyes.

She slapped him gently on the torso. "Hey! You're supposed to be a substitute for Bonnie and Caroline on Friday movie night." She reminded him and he raised his brow in interrogation, so she elaborated. "You're supposed to be drooling with me and saying how sexy he is, not criticizing him." She explained.

Damon scoffed. "Yeah, that's not happening." He said.

"Then, have the obligingness to shut up." She told him pointedly before focusing back on the movie.

Less than thirty minutes later, Revolutionary Road came to an end, and Elena reached out for the remote control to turn off the TV. Damon reached out for the hand-held device at the same time causing their fingers to brush against each other. Intense instant physical reaction. Damon would have sworn he felt an electric discharge go through him.

They retrieved their hands in slow motion and their eyes locked. In that moment, none of them would have been able to tear their gaze away from the other even if they had wanted to. Their eyes went back and forth between the other's eyes and lips. Tired of always thinking things through and overanalyzing, Elena decided to act on her feelings for a change, and shut out her reason: she gently crashed her lips against his. Though caught off guard, Damon still responded almost instantly.

It was a sweet yet impetuous kiss. It had been so long Damon had almost forgotten how amazing it felt to kiss Elena. The raven-haired woman had no idea what she was doing, but it sure felt good!

After several seconds, Elena pulled away and slowly opened her eyes to meet Damon's confused ones. She looked into them trying to gauge his reaction and to figure out what he was thinking: he looked as caught up in the moment as he was, so she took another chance and brought her lips closer to his again. She didn't kiss him, however, choosing to leave that decision to him.

Damon's eyes oscillated between Elena's captivating eyes and her luring lips. He sucked in a shaky intake of breath. Refusing to even try to understand what was happening, Damon closed the gap separating their lips and enjoyed the feelings of her lips moving in synchronization with his.

She brought her hand to the back of his head to pull him closer to her, and before he could even begin to register what was happening, Damon was half on top of her. They kissed more hungrily than before, as though they simply couldn't get enough of each other. Elena was utterly caught up in the heat of the moment: the only thing on her mind right now was Damon and his hands leaving a burning mark on her skin wherever he touched her.

She started unbuttoning his shirt as they ravaged one another's mouth. His shirt's two first buttons opened, Elena reached out for Damon's belt. She was trying to get him rid of it when he pulled away all of a sudden. Her right hand dropped from his hair to his neck and she lightly frowned in incomprehension. "Rebekah." He let out. Her brows raised at the blonde vampire's name. She stared at him as the realization dawned upon her, and then her hand dropped from his neck to her side.

"I can't do this to Rebekah." He said apologetically and lifted his gaze to her. She stared at him several seconds – and then looked away to the emptiness.


End file.
